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john's current neighborhood:


living room
(where i slept)

stoop sale
 

view from the
4th floor

mazzola's bakery
(downstairs)

union street
 

john and deanna's new condo (brooklyn heights):

to the museum of television and radio (all this month free admission with fleet bank card):

where we saw the following television programs:

  • several commercials from the 80's including moew mix's "meow meow meow meow"
  • he-man/she-ra christmas special (during a politically incorrect time when christmas was forced upon kids whether they liked it or not; also, she-ra is really hot and he-man had to be the most homoerotic children cartoon that was ever made, every single male character totally jacked and wearing skimpy bikini briefs, even the villains, like everyone bodybuilds during their downtime)
  • zoom
  • electric company ("ch...at...chat...")
  • doogie hower, m.d.: the summer of '91 (the episode where doogie looses his virginity)
  • sledge hammer! "hammer gets nailed"
  • degrassi junior high: "best laid plans"

synopsis for "best laid plans":

"steph asks wheels out on a date, but overheard conversations and bravado lead them to imply to their friends that they are going to "do something" - though neither is sure they are ready for it. yick has obtained a porno videotape and he and arthur look forward all day to viewing it."

visiting a church that looked very greek orthodox in architecture but it wasn't a greek orthodox church:

dinner at thailand cafe (maybe we were hungry, but the best thai food i've had in a long time):


early bird
appetizers

what john had

red curry
(what i had)

john suspected (from overheard conversations) that the blonde woman sitting across and behind us was on some sort of internet blind date.

strand bookstore (i think the internet blind date woman was there as well) then a taxi ride to cobble hill cinema (brooklyn) to watch van helsing:

books i bought:

"guide to amphibians and reptiles (stokes nature guide)" by thomas f. tyningthis spring, i'm all about the amphibians. the chapter on red-spotted newts is totally key in my quest to see a red eft this season.
 
"mesoamerican mythology: a guide to the gods, heroes, rituals, and beliefs of mexico and central america" by kay almere read and jason j. gonzalezwho *hearts* pre-columbian mesoamerican civilization more than me? this will make a nice addition in my modest mayan library collection.
 
national audubon society field guide to mushroomsi needed a guide to mushrooms. i have an eyewitness handbook but its for species around the world, not exclusively north america.
 
"nature in tokyo: a guide to plants and animals in and around tokyo" by kevin shortone day i'd like to go back to tokyo, and although that city is not known for its nature, apparently (from this book at least) there's a lot of nature to be found there.
 
not for tourist guide to boston 2004-2005my prayers have been answered! ever since i saw the nft guide to new york city, i've been waiting for a similar treatment for boston. i had no idea they were making one, but when i saw this book on the shelf, i grabbed at it like i'd just discovered the holy grail. if you live in boston, you owe it to yourself to get this book of maps. to say it's wicked awesome doesn't do it justice.

note: the single stall of the men's bathroom at the cobble hill cinema is so small my knees were pressed up against the door, and i'm not a large person. it's also shaped weird, like a trapezoid (bad bathroom feng shui), but at least it was clean.

van helsing is the kind of cinematic appetizer that whets your appetite for the rest of the summer blockbuster season. heavy in special effects and action sequences, low in coherent storyline. the attempt to combine the stories of dracula, frankenstein's monster, and werewolves doesn't quite work. casting is exceptional, hugh jackman is always good in whatever he does, kate beckinsale is easy on the eyes (her outfit makes her appear topless at times, intentional or otherwise). dracula on the otherhand could use some improvement: he looks more eurotrash (with that ponytail) than aristocrat, and lacks any sort of animal magnetism or charisma. a fun movie, junk food for the eyes and ears, although not a must see if you can only see so many blockbusters this season.

finally, john and i walked back to the old apartment where we pirated dvd's until 4am in the morning, watching several episodes of king of the hill.

degrassi junior high theme